Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
PIB Gangtok holds one day “Media Workshop- Vartalap” on ‘9 years of Seva, Sushasan & Garib Kalyan’
Digital Media should utilize their platforms to sensitize the masses about various welfare schemes of the government: Ms Pabitra Bhandari, Chairperson, SCBC
Government of India has done tremendous work on digital transformation and has changed it into an opportunity for all the people: Ms Jane Namchu, ADG , PIB
NABARD provides micro-banking and micro-ATM facilities in around 60 remote locations of Sikkim: Shri Sanjay Kumar Gupta, GM, NABARD
Digital transformation is evidently clear among people who are increasingly using online mode for payment, registration and other services: Dr L P Sharma, SIO, NIC
Northeast has enormous potentials in various sectors like bamboo products, skilled human resources and as a data hub for the nation: Shri A N Shankar, Prof. Sikkim University
Press Information Bureau, Government of India, Gangtok held today a daylong Media Workshop -Vartalap for journalists of Sikkim with the theme ‘9 years of Seva, Sushasan & Garib Kalyan’. The event was aimed at creating awareness among media persons about various welfare schemes, initiatives and projects undertaken by the Government of India during last 9 years.
Sikkim Commission for Backward Classes , Chairperson, Ms Pabitra Bhandari was the chief guest for the programme at Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, Deorali here. It was attended by the Additional Director General , North East Zone, PIB, General Manager NABARD, Senior Director/ State Informatics Officer National Informatics Centre, Sikkim, Professor, Department of Commerce, Sikkim University, President, Press Club of Sikkim, President, Journalist Union of Sikkim, and editors, journalists, reporters from various media houses across Sikkim and a large number of media persons from various parts of Sikkim.
Speaking at the inaugural session, Chairperson, SCBC, Ms Bhandari appreciated the initiative taken by PIB Gangtok for sensitizing the local media fraternity about the various achievements and public welfare initiatives taken by the Government of India during the last nine years. She urged the PIB to hold such outreach programmes in locations outside the Gangtok so that the villagers, especially the farmers, are made aware of those Central schemes that are intended to benefit them. It is important that those Central schemes related with agriculture sector are shared with the farmers in the rural areas, said Bhandari. She further urged the digital media houses of Sikkim to connect with PIB Gangtok for information on various Central welfare schemes for the public. Share information about such Central schemes to the rural populace through the digital platforms, she urged the gathering of journalists.
At the workshop, Additional Director General, PIB, North East Zone, Ms Jane Namchu spoke on the topic ‘Mainstream media and regional media’. She expressed that media houses pursue and disseminate news as per the preferences and language of their target audience. She spoke on the growth of online digital news in consonance with the digital transformation that happened in India in these nine years. The Government of India has done tremendous work on digital transformation and has changed it into an opportunity for all the people, and it is up to us how to harness the digital transformation, said Namchu.
General Manager, NABARD Sikkim, Shri Sanjay Kumar Gupta gave a presentation on ‘Ensuring farmers’ welfare on the perspective of Sikkim’. He shared about the responsibilities of NABARD which includes determining the annual credit plan of the banks into the identified priority sectors like agriculture, ensuring coverage of Kisan Credit Cards  and supporting cooperative societies of farmers and milk producers. Shri Gupta mentioned that the campaign to identify and cover fish and dairy farmers under KCC has resumed this year. He informed that NABARD has been able to provide micro-banking and micro-ATM facilities in around 60 remote locations of Sikkim through SISCO Bank where at least 1500 dairy farmers were also covered under KCC.
Dr. LP Sharma, Senior Director  & State Informatics Officer, National Informatics Centre , Sikkim spoke on the ‘Digital transformation – India marching ahead’. He told the gathering that digital transformation is evidently clear among the people who are increasingly using online mode for payment, registration and other services. Dr. Sharma also highlighted the services and tasks performed by the NIC Sikkim, especially during the Covid pandemic where the centre ensured connectivity among the people and government agencies through virtual conferences, zoom meetings and online classes.
Sikkim University’s Professor  Dr. AN Shankar spoke on the topic of ‘North East – A Growth Engine’ wherein he highlighted the enormous potential of the Northeast region in various sectors like bamboo products, skilled human resources, and as a data hub for the nation.
Former Director, PIB, Gangtok, Shri C K Dorjee  spoke on how Government and private media can complement each other.
While speaking on ‘Women journalists in media’, Ms Nita Nirash, Sr Journalist said, women in journalism were not taken seriously earlier. The first Indian woman journalist, Homi Vyasawalla took to photo journalism but had to get her work published in her husband’s name in the Illustrated weekly. However, through the years we have seen changes. Now the women journalists are taking to print, electronic and digital media with great confidence, she said.
At the outset, PIB Gangtok Deputy Director  Ms Monika spoke on the aims and objectives of the ‘Vartalap’ workshop. It is a workshop to reach out to the regional and sub-regional media, and sensitize them on Central schemes and policies so that they can create awareness about the same among the masses.